Studies of Chaetopterus variopedatus bioluminescence and new marine luminous systems.

• Grant number: 17/26279-2
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: May 01, 2018
• End date: April 30, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biophysics - Radiology and Photobiology
• Principal Investigator: Anderson Garbuglio de Oliveira
• Grantee: Anderson Garbuglio de Oliveira
• Host Institution: Instituto Oceanográfico (IO). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant(s): 18/22304-5 - Bioluminescence in marine worms (Annelida): molecular pathways and evolution, AP.R SPRINT
• Associated scholarship(s): 19/14644-3 - Cultivation and bioluminescence of dinoflagellates, BP.TT; 18/08959-9 - Cultivation and bioluminescence of dinoflagellates, BP.TT

Abstract

Bioluminescence is a chemical reaction that produces light, and is found in several marine and terrestrial species including the polychaete, Chaetopterus variopedatus. Unlike many bioluminescent organisms, C. variopedatus' bioluminescence involves a complex comprised of both the substrate (luciferin) and the enzyme (luciferase) called a photoprotein. This is more stable than its dissociated forms and the total amount of light emitted is proportional to the amount of the photoprotein used. Apart from some seminal studies in the 1960s, there is little to no information on the biochemistry of this reaction and the different components involved in light emission. Results obtained recently by our research group indicated that the bioluminescent reaction in C. variopedatus involves a photoprotein dependent on Fe (II), possibly a peroxidase. In addition, FPLC partially purified preparations of this enzyme produced intense blue light (max 450 nm) in vitro, presenting an emission spectrum quite similar to the bioluminescence exhibited by C. variopedatus. Therefore, the present project aims to characterize, clone and express the photoprotein of this organism, as well as to study its mechanism of light emission. In addition, the characterization of some new marine luminescent systems collected during our field expeditions will also be carried out. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

GALEAZZO, GABRIELA A.; MIRZA, JEREMY D.; DORR, FELIPE A.; PINTO, ERNANI; STEVANI, V, CASSIUS; LOHRMANN, KARIN B.; OLIVEIRA, ANDERSON G.. Characterizing the Bioluminescence of the Humboldt Squid, Dosidicus gigas (d'Orbigny, 1835): One of the Largest Luminescent Animals in the World. Photochemistry and Photobiology, v. 95, n. 5, p. 1179-1185, SEP 2019. (17/26279-2, 14/18541-0, 17/22501-2, 17/07677-7)

TESSLER, MICHAEL; GAFFNEY, JEAN P.; OLIVEIRA, ANDERSON G.; GUARNACCIA, ANDREW; DOBI, KRISTA C.; GUJARATI, NEHABEN A.; GALBRAITH, MOIRA; MIRZA, JEREMY D.; SPARKS, JOHN S.; PIERIBONE, VINCENT A.; et al. A putative chordate luciferase from a cosmopolitan tunicate indicates convergent bioluminescence evolution across phyla. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, v. 10, n. 1, OCT 20 2020. (17/26279-2, 14/18541-0)

MIRZA, JEREMY D.; MIGOTTO, ALVARO E.; YAMPOLSKY, ILIA V.; DE MORAES, GABRIELA V.; TSARKOVA, ALEKSANDRA S.; OLIVEIRA, ANDERSON G.. Chaetopterus variopedatusBioluminescence: A Review of Light Emission within a Species Complex. Photochemistry and Photobiology, v. 96, n. 4, p. 768-778, JUL 2020. (17/26279-2, 14/18541-0, 18/17857-5, 17/22501-2)